2015 Top Advisor Rankings: Florida

Ranked #1: Patrick Dwyer ♦ Dwyer joined Merrill Lynch's management training program in 1993. But after trying fieldwork as an advisor, he jumped off the management track. "I loved being a financial advisor," says Dwyer, 46. "I really like clients, and I love the market." Dwyer and his nine-person team serve 64 families, who typically have $10 million or more to invest. The team invests in math-geek fashion: They forecast rates of return of various asset classes, then deploy them within a portfolio to give clients the best chance to achieve rates of return needed to meet their goals. Like other top advisors, Dwyer is working to manage return expectations. "We're in unusual territory and we're trying to give clients a realistic idea of what's possible," he says. A New Jersey native, Dwyer says he chose to work in Miami after concluding its relatively laid-back atmosphere would allow him to outwork the competition. In his free time, he enjoys all-day mountain climbs in Colorado. —STEVE GARMHAUSEN